Famous Scots

was a Scottish biologist, pharmacologist and botanist. He wrote many articles on bacteriology, immunology, and chemotherapy. His best-known discoveries are the enzyme lysozyme in 1923 and the antibiotic substance benzylpenicillin in 1928, for which he shared the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1945. >> More Info

was a Scottish-born scientist, inventor, engineer and innovator who is credited with inventing the first practical telephone. Many other inventions marked Bell’s later life, including groundbreaking work in optical telecommunications, hydrofoils and aeronautics. In 1888, Bell became one of the founding members of the National Geographic Society. >> More Info

was a Scottish moral philosopher, pioneer of political economy, and key Scottish Enlightenment figure. Smith is best known for two classic works: The Theory of Moral Sentiments (1759), and An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations (1776). >> More Info

was a Scottish engineer, innovator, one of the inventors of the mechanical television and the inventor of the first publicly demonstrated colour television system; and the first purely electronic colour television picture tube. Baird’s early technological successes and his role in the practical introduction of broadcast television for home entertainment have earned him a prominent place in television’s history. >> More Info

was a Scottish civil engineer, architect and stonemason, and a noted road, bridge and canal builder. After establishing himself as an engineer of road and canal projects in Shropshire, he designed numerous infrastructure projects in his native Scotland, as well as harbours and tunnels. Such was his reputation as a prolific designer of highways and related bridges, he was dubbed The Colossus of Roads, and, reflecting his command of all types of civil engineering in the early 19th century, he was elected as the first President of the Institution of Civil Engineers. >> More Info

was a Scottish inventor and mechanical engineer whose improvements to the Newcomen steam engine were fundamental to the changes brought by the Industrial Revolution in both his native Great Britain and the rest of the world. >> More Info

Elizabeth (Eliza) Wigham (23 February 1820 – 3 November 1899) was a leading suffragist and abolitionist in 19th-century Edinburgh, Scotland. She was involved in several major campaigns to improve women’s rights in 19th-century Britain, and has been noted as one of the leading citizens of Edinburgh. >> More Info